Original Source : http://www.sundaymail.co.uk/features/content_objectid=13854475_method=full_siteid=86024_headline=-I%2DTOOK%2DFRIENDS%2D%2DBLOOD%2DPRESSURE%2DTO%2DLEARN%2DHOW%2DTO%2DPLAY%2DSCREEN%2DDOC-name_page.html I TOOK FRIENDS' BLOOD PRESSURE TO LEARN HOW TO PLAY SCREEN DOC Jan 25 2004 Keanu sets hearts racing as hunky cardiac doctor -How Keanu Reeves trained to play cardiac medic who wins heart of Diane Keaton- Hollywood hunk Keanu Reeves has caused many a female heart to flutter over the years. But in his latest role, as a cardiac specialist in romantic comedy Something's Gotta Give, he had to learn how to look convincing as he cures dodgy tickers. Keanu, 39, said: ''I met with my GP and he gave me some pointers in terms of dealing with the stethoscope and how you lay hands on people to make them feel comfortable and dealing with things like the blood pressure cuff. ''And I took all of my friends' blood pressure and listened to their hearts.'' The Matrix star even went undercover to treat real-life hospital patients. He said: ''I went to a couple of emergency rooms and I'd be introduced as the intern got the greens on, the scrubs and I'd hang out. ''Then I went to Southampton hospital, near New York, and they were very gracious with their time and I got to hang out in ER there and speak with the head of the ER department.'' All of which must have provided some shocks for the patients he examined. How would you feel on realising the man taking your blood pressure began his career not at medical school but as a moronic teenager in Bill And Ted's Excellent Adventure? But it seems most of them were only too delighted. He said: ''I gave some autographs and met some people while the blood was popping out of their arms. It was nice actually.'' In Something's Gotta Give, Keanu stars alongside Oscar winners Jack Nicholson and Diane Keaton. Cardiac specialist Keanu becomes Nicholson's rival for the heart of Keaton. The film has been well received in the States. Agreeing to this project was an easy decision for Keanu and not just because the comedy is so different from the sci-fi action of The Matrix. Keanu said: ''I thought it was one of the best scripts had ever read and Jack Nicholson and Diane Keaton were doing the project. ''So for me it was a great script, and mean working with two of the greatest actors.'' Diane By JOHN MILL ARK eat on said she was more nervous about her kissing scene with Keanu than snogging Jack. Keanu grinned. ''Well, they've kissed before I think, '' he said. ''But it was a fun moment to play tender, sexy... hot.'' Equally fun, it seems, is Keanu's list of new movies. Next up for him will be Constantine, which is based on the comic book Hell blazer, and stars Keanu as a supernatural detective. There is also talk of him starring in the North African epic Tripoli. After playing the uber-cool hero Neo in The Matrix movies a role that was supposedly turned down by Brad Pitt, Leonardo Di Caprio and Ewan McGregor Keanu is obviously in huge demand. He is one of Hollywood's top earning stars reckoned to be worth £236 million. Yet he insists good film roles haven't become easier to come by because of The Matrix in which he starred alongside Hugo Weaving. ''I wish that was true but it's not, '' he said. ''Finding a good script or a role is tough. It's not just like they are sitting there. Often it's not up to me you want to do a role but that's been cast already. That kind of thing.'' And when he is asked what his worst nightmare might be, his answer is so immediate you know it is a genuine dread. ''Unemployment!'' he claims, is what he really fears. ''In terms of acting I still have that sense of being the young man coming over to work. I guess that fear hasn't been taken away.'' Keanu, whose name means ''cool breeze over the mountains'' in Hawaiian, was only 20 when he left his Toronto home for Hollywood and stardom. Looking back, he agreed it was quite a gamble. He said: ''I think had the courage of youth. You just go off and try and you hope. I didn't know what was going to happen and it didn't matter. I didn't have any other thought besides coming out to work as an actor.'' His first success came with the cult Bill And Ted comedy films, which led to hits Speed and Dracula. Then came a disastrous string of flops, including Chain Reaction and Johnny Mnemonic. It was only with cyber-adventure series The Matrix that Keanu reached iconic status. Whatever the pressures and difficulties of work, life away from the big screen is a simple affair for Keanu. He has one passion motor bikes. He has several and says his favourite is a 1974 Norton Commando Mark II A. And when he's riding one of them, it seems the sensible actor becomes an instant teen rebel. Keanu once suffered broken ribs and a ruptured spleen after a motorbike crash. And he confesses to regularly breaking the law as he describes his favourite motorcycle trip, along the Pacific Highway from Los Angeles to the ocean. He said: ''I go through Mulholland and the canyons, hit the 101 and come back over Laurel Canyon. I'm feeling good, man. Maybe through Mulholland I'll take the helmet off. It's against the law but what does that mean? Why do I have to ride with a helmet? Whose life is it anyway? ''If I have got health insurance I'm not costing the community and I'm not hurting anybody. It's great to see nature and drive in the wind, have the physical sense of it.'' Off-screen, as well as his beloved bikes, Keanu looks forward to such joys as: ''The end of a good day of work, sitting in bed with a loved one and deep and enriching conversation when you share your views of the world with a good friend. My day-to-day life is pretty normal.'' And just like the rest of us, he worries about getting older. He admits the prospect of his next birthday, on September 2, is a source of concern. ''Yeah, turning 40 is something, '' he said. ''It's scary but I'm hoping that it's like when you turn 30. You're freaked about that and then on your birthday you feel it isn't so bad. ''I have been speaking to some older men and asking them what happens. I've asked, 'Am going to be freaked out?' But they've said it'll be OK. So hopefully it will be.'' Keanu says that his dreams and hopes for his the next decade are simple a good life and work. And in the unlikely event his movie work ever dries up, his research for his latest film will ensure he could always get a role on Casualty.